Founded in 2011, Skywatchers brings residents of San Francisco’s Tenderloin District into partnership with professional artists to create multi-disciplinary, site-specific performance installations that amplify the rich and complex stories, life experiences, and talents of community members. ABD initiated the Skywatchers program in collaboration with Community Housing Project (CHP) and the Luggage Store Gallery.
Skywatchers is committed to justice and equity as a critique of the current societal structures that marginalize large segments of the population. Creative expression and artistry are the foundation of a unique set of methodological practices to resist, confront, expose, or intervene in those structures, working towards social change on the individual and systemic levels. We believe in the power of art and collective creative endeavors to transform lives, embody our interconnectedness, and infuse our lives with agency, possibility, and increased vitality.
Skywatchers is structured on the belief that relationships are the first site of social change. We believe that large-scale transformation begins with intimate, interpersonal exchange and that all stakeholders are transformed in this process—artists, resident participants, as well as site staff.
Learn more about ABD Productions and Skywatchers at www.abdproductions.org/skywatchers-2-2/. Photos courtesy of Skywatchers.